What to know about the Iran war:President Trump said Wednesday that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu will do “whatever I want him to do” on Iran. Mr. Trump also said he’s “in no hurry” to make a deal to end the war.Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps has threatened to push the war “beyond the region” if the U.S. or Israel resume attacks, promising “crushing blows … in places you cannot even imagine.”The threat comes after President Trump said he had been “an hour away” from ordering new strikes on Iran Monday evening before Persian Gulf allies asked him not to go ahead with the plans, citing progress in peace talks. Pakistan army chief heading to Tehran to continue mediation efforts between U.S. and Iran
Pakistan’s Army Chief Asim Munir will travel to Tehran on Thursday to continue his nation’s efforts to help Iran and the U.S. reach a deal to end the Mideast war, Iran’s ISNA news agency said.
“The visit comes amid continued regional diplomatic activity aimed at easing tensions and advancing negotiations,” ISNA said.
Pakistan has been the leading mediator between the U.S. and Iran, conveying messages as the sides continue their indirect talks.
Hardline Iranian general emerges as major player in peace talks with U.S.
As negotiations with the United States hang in the balance, a hard-line Iranian general linked to notorious attacks at home and abroad over the past decades is believed to have seized a place near the center of power.
Brig. Gen. Ahmad Vahidi, who heads Iran’s paramilitary Revolutionary Guard, has become a major player in formulating Iran’s tough stance in negotiating a possible end to the war with the United States, experts say. He is believed to be part of a small clique in direct contact with Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Mojtaba Khameini, who remains in hiding after being reportedly wounded in the Feb. 28 Israeli strikes that killed his father, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.
Like everything in Iran since the war began, who ultimately controls decision-making remains uncertain. As people within the upper ranks of Iran’s theocracy vie for power, they can gain or lose favor quickly. Vahidi himself hasn’t been seen publicly since Feb. 8, weeks before the war began.
A longtime veteran of the ruling system, Vahidi helped shape Iran’s support of militant groups across the region, is accused of a role in the 1994 bombing of a Jewish center in Argentina, and in 2022 led domestic security forces in a bloody crackdown on protesters.
Elevated to Guard commander this year after his predecessor was killed early in the war, he leads the most powerful force in Iran, with its arsenal of ballistic missiles and its fleet of small boats threatening Persian Gulf shipping.
“Vahidi and members of his inner circle have likely consolidated control over not only Iran’s military response in the conflict but also Iran’s negotiations policy,” the Washington-based Institute for the Study of War said.
Credit: Yahoo News